St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-12-10
A MEAN CORPORATION.
The Chicago & Northwestern Road Re-
fuses to Give Farmers Cars.
WHEAT BUYERS FAVORED.
The Farmers Thoroughly Organized and
Determined to Fight the
Railroads.


Special to the Globe.
HURON, OAK. Dec. THE annual
meeting of the Dakota Farmers ALI
ance, which will convene in this city
Dec IS. is likely to give attention to
few matters in which railroads and
farmers are interested. For several
months past. and especially since early
in the fall, there has been much com
plant among farmers because of the
failure or refusal OH the part of the rail
road companies to provide farmers with
cars in which to ship grain. Station
agents on the Dakota division of the
Northwestern were Instructed to fur
niSh cars only to grain buyers, and none
whatever to farmers. If two or three
farmers would club together and get a
couple of carloads of grain for shipment
they were refused cars for this purpose.
This frequently was done, but earnest
cntreaties for cars went unheard. A
farmer north from CavOur desired to
ship a load of wheat to Chicago He
applied to the agent at Cavour for a car
and was told that cars would
only be furnished to grain buyers
and dealers: his orders were to
furnish no cars to farmers. The
granger hauled his wheat back home. as
the elevator at Cayour was full and he
could not dispose of it. The following
day the same farmer, in company with
a neighbOr and gentleman who
CHANGED to be visiting in the neighbOr-
hood. went to Iroquois with two loads of
wheat. The visitor applied to the rail
road agent for car in which to unload
the grain. The agent inquired if he
was farmer, and was told no: that he
had couple of loads of wheat on the
street and must have car at once; that
more would arrive the same afternoon,
and he desired car Immediately. So
buSineSs-like and determined was the
man that the agent provided him with
car within short time. Before it was
filled, he asked for second car which
was also provided, and in this way the
farmers. who had been refused cars
succeeded in getting their grain shipped.
A few days since Hon. j. A. Patten,
of Carthage. member of the last general
assembly, and A. ID. Chase, of Water
town, grand lecturer for the Dakota
Farmers alliance. were in this city in
consultation with Railroad Commission
ers BOynton and Smith relative to
complaint made by Mr.. Chase
against the Chicago & Northwest
ern railway, charging discrimina-
ton against farmers in furn-
NHIo anu lC1uS-
ing to provide them for farmers for
shipping grain. Also, that grain buyers
loaded cars from farmers wagons and
not from warehouses and elevators.
Mr.. Patten said that at Carthage but
two cars had been provided for farmers
this fall, although dozens had been
asked for. The conference was not as
satisfactory as Mr.. Patten and Mr.. Chase
desired, but resulted in getting promise
from Division Superintendent Oliver to
the effect that he would modify his
order pertaining to supplying farmers
with cars.
The instance notedabove is only one
of many others of the same sort.
The farmers have good reason to COM
plain, and if the Alliance at its annual
meeting does not take strong stand
and some determined action in the mat
ter of discriminating against them, it
will be strange indeed. They evidently
hope for little at the hands of the rail-
road commissioners. They will 90 be-
yond and demand legislation that will
give them relief. And they will get it,
for they are united and determined.